US12 Twin Cities

[kramer]

Is anyone aware of an plans to expand US12 west of 494 in Minnesota?  I have only driven that stretch a handful of times, but have always been shocked that it is only two lanes beginning around Wayzata.  I grew up in North Dakota and by my standards there is more than enough traffic to justify a freeway in that area (of course MNDoT may have stricter standards). Recently I've seen a string of deadly accidents on this stretch of highway on the news and it just makes my blood boil every time it happens.  I'd love to see something done to improve the safety in that corridor.

[froggie]

You do realize it is freeway out to the edge of Maple Plain, right?  Sure it's 2 lanes, but you don't hit a traffic signal until County 29.  There are no plans besides spot improvements, in part because Maple Plain and Independence couldn't agree on a bypass route 20 years ago.

[peterj920]

If you're headed out towards South Dakota, MN 7 is the better route to use.  There's less communities to go through, and mainly has a 60 mph speed limit.  It meets up with US 12 just before South Dakota in Ortonville.

[kramer]

You do realize it is freeway out to the edge of Maple Plain, right?  Sure it's 2 lanes, but you don't hit a traffic signal until County 29.

I apologize that I may have used the term freeway incorrectly.  I am aware that there is controlled access and that there is a wider-than-usual center line area with (I believe) double rumble strips. However, it seems that there are still lots of accidents caused by people making risky passing attempts, as well as winter accidents that inevitably send a car careening into oncoming traffic, which wouldn't be nearly as serious with an interstate-style divided highway.

[TheHighwayMan3561]

I wonder if we'll start to see renewed calls for a 4-lane bypass of some of these cities on the western fringes of the metro coming in the near future. It's unlikely that even with that that it could be funded unless it's decided it's an emergency and funding for a bunch of other projects is diverted.